They won the right to pay in-state tuition in 2011 and on Tuesday Connecticut’s undocumented students got one step closer to accessing $100 million in financial aid.

The Senate approved legislation giving Connecticut’s “Dreamers” access to financial aid after about an hour of debate. The bill passed on a 24-12 vote and now heads to the House where there was a lengthy, seven-hour debate Tuesday on another bill that shortens the amount of time these students have to live in the state to qualify to pay the in-state tuition rate. The House bill passed 78-70, making it one of the closest votes of the session.

The state’s colleges have a practice of setting aside between 15 and 18 percent of the tuition collected from all students and distributing it as financial aid to needy students. The bill passed Tuesday by the Senate would give these Dreamers access to those funds, so no state money would be set aside for the fund.

“Dreamers” are the children of parents who illegally immigrated to the United States.

Sen. President Martin Looney said these students are not eligible for federal financial aid and this legislation recognizes a group of people striving to achieve the American Dream.